Rewatch Update
After rewatch .... I found this even better the second time around because of the details woven into the story and character development that didn't register the first time around. Upgrade to a 10.*****************
This series is an original that pulls very different genres together in a bold experiment that works on net. There are cases when it fails miserably but these tend to be offset often enough by what works to make it an enjoyable experience.
One one hand it contains a lot of slapstick comedy with the loose plotting that goes with such comedies, but there is also frequent violent action with broken limbs and dead bodies (often done in by Vincenzo) littering the screen. Sometimes the transition from one to the other is jarring. Usually, an action comedy will downplay or hide the violence - think cartoons. And usually a gory action thriller will go light on comedy staying with witty one liners here and there. Vincenzo boldly throws these together and on net it works more often than not.
After a few episodes we get used to outlandish contrivances to get out of deadly situations.
On the serious side Vincenzo is an unapologetic mafia member straight out of southern Italy who by the last episode indulges in some seriously torturous contrived endings for the main villains of the story. The producers did not shy away from showing the blood and gore. In Vincenzo series we've put aside any pretensions to an absolute good vs bad and entered a world where relativistic laws prevail. Someone can be construed as 'good' if they only do bad to someone who is worse, in other words someone who deserves a painful ending delivered outside the law.
The show and character Dexter come to mind. Dexter is also an ostensibly evil character (he kidnaps and tortures people to death with a knife) who is the hero. Dexter in the show was toned down from the character in the book series. In the written version Dexter, in an uneasy alliance with a demon cohabiting in his mind, killed his victims by a long hours long torture - vivisection to be exact. The demon was delighted with the torture and in exchange endowed Dexter with some supernatural perception. Dexter followed a code which limited his hobby to people who really deserved it. For the show in early episodes this torture was alluded to but not shown, and then later it was suppressed entirely with Dexter dispatching each victim with a clean stab to the heart. Was Dexter, the hero of his story, evil? The writer ensures sympathy by making sure the reader is well aware of the sins of Dexter's victims (all serial killers). Dexter becomes a vigilante helping society cleanse itself of the hidden evil its justice system is unable to find and deal with. The TV show producers were not comfortable with the vigilante angle and eventually destroyed the character by portraying him as insane (no demon so no bargain),
In Vincenzo the producers are well aware of the issue of good vs evil and how problematic Vincenzo and his actions are. By the last few episodes there are a few occasions where Vincenzo candidly looks into the mirror and acknowledges that he's often doing what the average person would condemn. He offers a fatalistic justification, but the key is that he, the character, is well aware of the issue. And we the audience more or less are rooting for him.
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This review may contain spoilers
Heartwarming Gem
There were a few rough edges but lots of heart that shined brightly once things got going.In particular, although the ending was necessarily abbreviated it was satisfying. I’m surprised that this series hasn’t gotten the 12 or 16 hour long episode treatment. The three hours didn’t seem long at all but forced what I felt was a too brief treatment of some twists.
For example, the ending revealed several interesting connections among the living and the dead that deserved to be expanded in more background story developments.
Also the ending revealed a final ending for the main character that could and should have had a longer exploration vs the few minutes it received.
A little jarring for me was that midway through several people talked to a girl they knew died 7 years prior without much of a dramatic ripple. That really needed more context and development - the livings’ reactions and perhaps the formerly dead girl’s adjustments.
This is one that gets better as you go and finishes with a satisfying ending.
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Maslow Would Approve
This one is bit different. The initial contrivance is a romantic drama, and in the first few episodes the story plays out as might be expected. However, half way through or thereabouts the main story (which revolves around the primary couple plus two other couples) continues but the self reflection and injection of ideas via quotes and allusions to famous and not so famous authors markedly increases (e.g. Maslow, Becker, Goethe). These injections and allusions are in the dialogue and often in the thoughts and or overview narration.This might be off-putting to some as it was to the primary female lead’s mother. In a scene near the last episode the female lead is explaining some unexpected and radical decision to her mother, and she starts saying out loud some of these self absorbed rationales for her decisions and the mother abruptly says, “That’s a load of crap.” If the viewer empathizes with the mother then they probably won’t be watching through until this penultimate episode anyway, but if the viewer appreciates the in depth self reflection of the main character, then this series is for you.
I suspect a lot of autobiographical inspiration for many of the experiences of these sharply drawn characters.
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Could have been worse
Lotta flaws in this production but some good parts too.The script sounds like a draft that needs a lot of work. In the right hands the anime might have been a new franchise series, but (I didn't read the anime) I suspect a lot of background material was left out. Some expansion on the why of the characters' motivations and background details would have helped. Given the wide variety of creative inputs it's surprising it worked as well as it did (not very well at all). The Korean and American actresses went on to active careers so they did what they could with the material. The movie was too short (1.5 hours) and even that was padded with excessive chopping and slashing scenes as if someone thought that would distract from the wooden acting and dialogue.
Once the big reveal happens I was curious to see more of the Saya character and what she would to do going forward. This movie should have been the set - up for a great series revolving around Saya.
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Fun Entertaining Watch
The story and characters got better with each episode such that I hope they continue with the main characters in a part 2. I thought there were a number of plot holes and open questions on how the universe worked, but because the story doesn't take itself too seriously and because of the character growth you don't care about those questions. At the end I was left wanting to see what happens next with these characters.Was this review helpful to you?
Starts Slow, Gets Better
This reminded me of the old CSI series but at times a bit clumsy in weaving the character growth, plots, and crimes into a smooth story. The pilot was slow but as the episodes progressed they got much better. The grating flaw in the production was often the background music which drew attention to itself - was often weird - especially that piano.Was this review helpful to you?
Clumsy but engaging
The description sounds interesting. Honestly though after a few minutes what kept me going through the first few episodes was the question whether the lead actress' acting was really that bad, or maybe the director was coercing the odd overly physical emotional expressions. The story gets better, and I finally lean towards blaming the director. Later she does show acting talent. The plotting and overall production was below average.Was this review helpful to you?
Well worth giving a try, with a few reservations
I watched this because I had just finished Extraordinary Attorney Woo and I wanted to see Park Eun Bin outside of that extreme autistic character. And she does not disappoint. If I had not known the characters Woo and Seo were played by the same actor I would not have realized it. It is a remarkable talent that can take the audience so deeply into the character as to not see the actor. There are too many famous actors that overwhelm the character they're playing so that the audience only sees the actor.The music and performances are well worth the time. The story and plotting are at times fragile meaning that characters' twists and motivations were not always believable and relatable. However, the acting and music carry the flow and engage the viewer. I found the first few episodes not as engaging as the later ones. At times the plot twists seemed overly complicated and manipulative. For example early on I became aware the writer wants to play with the audience as to which brother is KiHo. Once aware of that manipulation, instead of the story flowing naturally the audience becomes too self conscious that the clues obviously dropped are likely meant to be misleading.
I found the positives more than made up for the few flaws and kept me engaged through to a satisfying conclusion.
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Remake has all the high and low points of original
This version holds its own compared to the original meaning that the viewer will see all the original high and low points of the original story. However, the finished product has a few rough edges. Some of the support acting (or perhaps the director?) was a bit weak. On the positive side a few of the subplots were improved over the original in particular the relationship with the big bad doctor and his female student and third in the love triangle with the two leads. The Korean version didn't develop this relationship whereas the Thai shows us the potential.Several rough edges came through which may be due to the many writers involved in the Thai version.
The lead's uncle withholds key information (that there is a demon stalking him) until suddenly he reveals a few morsels in front of the ghost girlfriend which struck me as odd. It moves the plot tension but didn't make sense to tell his nephew based on prior exposition, particularly because a few times in the same episode and before he told his shaman ally that he absolutely could not tell his nephew about this demon, and then he does...in front of a ghost he knows nothing about. It would actually have made a lot of sense to explain all about this dangerous demon much earlier.
A really rough edge occurs in an early episode when the Detective explains to his officers that he wants them to tail the doctor suspect. One officer does, and the doctor detects this, and leads the officer behind the building within a stone's throw of his clinic and parked car, and kills him. Then.....nothing. What happened to the body? Neither the Detective or any police officers note the absence of their colleague. That was just sloppy execution.
Something interesting that caught my attention was in the 10th episode at 4:30 the two leads are in a scene which was probably improvised where they are bantering over their dinner. The female lead speaks Thai followed by Japanese, and then a few English words. The difference in voice timber was striking. Her voice is very different in the three languages. I've heard this often among Japanese where both men and women will have totally different voices between English and Japanese.
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Good but shy of Great
On the positive side are the three main characters and their shared shattered backgrounds from their childhoods. Over several episodes they are brought back together and their shared pasts are unlayered through a series of satisfying reveals. The support acting was well done and other overall production values high.On the bad side the antagonist was so powerful - as we learn through slow reveals - that we wondered how they planned to defeat him. This is the main flaw in the show - a structural problem is that the main characters and we the audience never understand the how and why the big bad can be defeated. In an early episode it's said they will exorcise him/it when they catch him/it. At times they behave like impulsive middle schoolers talking about catching the bad guy with no clear idea what they'll do with him should that happen. There are scenes where they rush towards the big bad, especially true for the taxi driver, Hwa Pyung, with absolutely no expressed plan how to get through bodyguards or other obstacles or what happens when they 'catch' him.
One common problem with media centered on exorcism is that they contain exorcism scenes in which the priest or shaman endlessly chants some holy words that fail over and over and over until they work - or not. This show has the same flaw in that we (and the main characters) never learn (until they very end) what MacGuffin - thing or rule or process - will defeat the big bad evil spirit, and in fact as the episodes progress it becomes obvious that the big bad, Park Il-Do, is seriously powerful and far stronger than we were given to believe in early episodes.
And because of this structural flaw the close had to - literally - reveal a Deus Ex Machina. Notice the prayer the priest uses at the very end in the water. He calls upon God directly, and God delivers. And the last scene where the three are reunited is as pure DEM as it gets given where we last saw Hwa-Pyung.
Despite the serious structural flaw the good (main character arcs, relationships, story arc) out weighs the bad for at least one watch through.
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Impressive start to finish
Supernatural suspense crime thriller. I was engaged from the first episode through the last. It's not easy to sustain the tension for 12 hours but the screenwriter, Kim Eun Hee, and directors do just that. The reveals build as we follow two parallel investigations - secular police detectives and a supernatural expert - separately pursuing the 'culprit' behind a series of suspicious suicides. These two avenues collide frequently as they bump into the each other following various evidence and leads. The performance of Kim Tae Ri as the focus of the story deserves praise as exceptionally well done. Her character is both the protagonist and the antagonist.Was this review helpful to you?
Comfortable Watch
This series is a spin off of a show I have not seen, Hospital Playlist.This is not the usual Korean drama series.
This series follows the growth of four first year residents through day to day challenges. One of the four gets most of the attention especially early on. She was fired as a first year resident at another hospital, but we don't know why.
There's no big bad villain and no over arcing series thread with a lead up to a big climax and resolution. Instead we get gentle waves of minor sub stories as the four gradually develop their skills and along the way become friends.
The primary romance angle of the main R1 character is unusually linear moving forward step by step. I found it refreshing and unpredictable as I would check the episode number expecting the usual volatile up and down, on again off again plot development for romantic entanglements.
The characters feel comfortably real as we get to know and like them more and more with each passing episode.
The series is brought to a satisfactory end, or more accurately, endings, as each character and surrounding subplots and threads find satisfactory resting points in their lives and for us as viewers. Near the end a new nurse appears in the ward and it turns out she was one of three people present when the incident occurred that got our main R1 fired from her previous hospital and that news rewards the viewer with a nice satisfying cap to that early question.
This could easily have additional seasons as the residents have three more years of challenges to face. The writer left plenty of openings for continuation but unfortunately this is labeled as a limited series and the prospects for more are slim. That's too bad because I really liked these four characters and several of the supporting characters and would appreciate a continuation to this peek into their lives.
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Late Discovered Gem From 2013
1) Keep in mind this is from 2013. Don't hold tropes you've seen before against. This one probably came before.2) Supernatural X Cinderella ---- Business Proposal with strong supernatural dimension. If you liked Oh My Ghost, Hotel del Luna, or Bring it on, Ghost there's a good chance you'll like this one.
3) I was hooked from the first episode and binged the rest.
4) This was my first time seeing Gong Kyo Jin playing Tae Gong Shil aka the Big Sun and I was very impressed. She exudes a very attractive down to earth girl next door charisma that's hard not to like.
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Not Afraid to Deliver the Needed Ending
In this brief six episode story a young woman, extroverted, outgoing, and with an impish love of pranks develops an odd relationship with the new nerdish guy in her homeroom by cajoling him into exchanging names with her as part of a school April Fool’s Day prank. This name change becomes a running connection in their ever closer friendship. They have feelings for each other but for fear of rejection can’t get the couple connection going.He dies and she is devastated realizing that he was the love of her life. She loses the will to live. Then one day four years later her dead love-of-her life appears in front of her. He’s now a grim reaper and he tells her she dies in one week and he plans to spend that week with her.
The six episodes focus on that week with frequent flashbacks filling in their lives’ details. As far as the why and how of grim reapers there’s not much in the way of exposition. The little we do see is an obvious foreshadowing of a key plot twist like a pilot warning passengers to buckle up because of looming turbulence.
Beautiful stories that grab you emotionally don’t always have happy endings. He’s dead and a grim reaper and she’s alive so the prospects for a happy ending aren’t all that rosy.
Despite the grim reaper supernatural element the story doesn’t try to scare nor does it have a focus on the supernatural, but instead plays it straight setting up situations and letting characters and viewers deal with emotional impact.
Can a grim reaper somehow prevent a scheduled death from occurring? What are the repercussions? Grim reaper stories are often about life and not death, about the living struggling with regrets and loss. And sometimes they’re about the dead being given a voice in the story to confront losses they regret from when alive. If you could come back from death to help someone you deeply love, how much would you be willing to sacrifice?
A more timid screenwriter would feel compelled to deliver a pat happy ending. They might warn of horrible outcomes but then by some unlikely twist deliver what most people want and not what the story demands. WBL doesn’t shy away from the needed ending.
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Way Back Love’s emotional touchstones reminded me of another story also centered around using grim reapers to talk about life, a dark comedy called Dead Like Me (2003-2004) 29 episodes over two seasons. The main character is a 18 year old college dropout, Georgia aka George, who dies and is drafted into a local team of grim reapers. George has a hard time adjusting to the daily bloody violent deaths and she rebels. Complicating her transition to an afterlife career as a reaper is that she reaps within walking distance from her still living and grieving family. Her death hits her family hard causing the parents to divorce and her younger 11 year old sister, Reggie, to act out. George rebels against the reaper system dictating non interference with the living by surreptitiously helping Reggie who realizes that as impossible as it might seem her dead older sister is still around.
On the surface DLM is a comedy but there are some deeper emotions and issues running throughout. But the same question so important in WBL confronts the undead DLM reapers (not only George but her boss, Rube, too) as to how far can a reaper push against the rules and their unseen power, Death, that dictates their reaps.
In early episodes Rube is loudly and aggressively demanding that George follow the rules and stay away from her family. But George hides her meddling with the living. And sometimes she openly rebels. There’s a touching early few scenes in which George in defiance against the big boss, Death, and her reaper boss Rube goes to her family’s front door (not on Halloween) and is confronted by her mother who of course can’t recognize her. To prove her identity George attempts to convey a cherished memory that only the two of them share, but her words come out garbled and her mother chases her away. Later sitting with Rube in a diner she sheepishly confesses her breaking the rules and he uncharacteristically tenderly asks if she can remember that cherished memory. She can’t. And Rube explains that whenever a reaper attempts to use a shared memory to talk to someone they knew when alive, that memory is lost forever. The more the undead try to connect with the living from their former life, the more of that life they lose. Rube says to her that all reapers get to keep from their lives is their memories.
In WBL limited by six episodes the story focuses tightly on the relationship between the two main characters in a romantic dynamic. In DLM with 29 episodes there’s more branching out and while the focus is on George and her family, there a parallel story line that follows Rube and what happened to him and his family some eighty years prior.
Rube died during the Great Depression when to help his wife and daughter (about five years old at the time) he robs a bank and ends up dead, and then is drafted to become a grim reaper. He, like George, breaks the rules and tries to help his family sending an anonymous letter with cash to them. Eighty years later in present day he gets a notice from the US Post Office there’s a letter for him, it’s the letter he had sent and forgotten so long ago. Death that operates on a time scale and with goals beyond human comprehension sidelined that letter and delivered it back to him in the present (to a different return address no less). That his attempt to help his family failed triggers something in good soldier Rube and he rebels himself and covertly finds his now aged daughter. When he arrives at his daughter’s nursing home just before she dies we learn she’s been waiting for and recognizes him (which means she interacted with him after he died and before he sent the letter).
DLM has 29 episodes to work with. There’s an interesting character that we know about only by its manipulations, Death. Rube some eighty years prior was placed near his family and something happened back then that made him into an obedient reaper staying away from his family. Normally reapers are only placed far away from where they lived. One woman on the team died in the state of Georgia, another man in the UK. Then out of blue young George is placed with Rube’s team near her living family. Death returning the letter to Rube triggers a radical change that leads him to a final reconciliation with his now elderly daughter at her death. Why might have been explained in a third season.
By the end of the second season George has become a good soldier, a capable reaper who no longer feels compelled to contact her family and Rube has finally found some peace of mind after having carried personal regrets and perhaps a bitter grudge against God those eighty years. We aren’t allowed to listen in as to what he said to his daughter before she died and after when she passed into the hereafter, but it had a profound impact on Rube.
In DLM reapers look as they did when alive to each other and to ghosts, but to the living they look totally different except on one day and night of each year, Halloween. At that time only people who knew them when alive can see them again in their living appearance. George often visits her own grave and in a key final scene of the second season Reggie on Halloween night sleeps on George’s grave and in the morning dawn light wakes to see her older dead sister standing near her confirming the impossible that her sister is around in a very physical way. When George and Reggie see each other, George turns and walks away*.
Both DLM and WBL are stories in which the dead and the living can interact and deal with those regrets left unspoken. If you liked WBL you’ll probably appreciate DLM.
* PS I liked the two seasons of DLM so much I wrote two novels - season 3 and season 4. If you watch the TV show you might find the novels worth checking out. These are posted at a website called archiveofourown dot org. The first is titled Dead Like Me 2013 and the sequel Dead Like Me 2014.
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Lots of Torture, Then the Revenge
This should be taken as one season of 16 episodes. The break is artificial and you should plan for the whole 16 to get the whole story.It took me a year to get through those first two episodes because of the intense torture of the main character victim. What follows is an elaborate vigilante revenge plot executed on the clique that inflicted that torture so easily.
I had no problem with for example the Judge From Hell, which was an enjoyable experience watching the bad guys get their just consequences. However, this one was so difficult. Perhaps the hard scenes were necessary to justify the slow burn building towards the punishment of an adult group, all well established in their lives, thinking that the crimes they had committed on the main character, and others, were forgotten and that they had escaped.
The character that unexpectedly stood out for me was the husband (Jung Sung Il playing Ha Do Young) of the main villain (Park Yeon Jin). Of everyone he proved himself the noblest of the lot.
The single most impressive performance was that of Im Ji Yeon playing the main villain Park Yeon Jin. I'm not saying you'll be rooting for her at any time, but the actress expresses the internal struggles of the character masterfully as she slowly feels the trap close about her step by step until it shuts with a finality at end. As each step is revealed we can read its impact on her face and her actions.
This one sets a high quality bar for future vigilante revenge stories.
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